The staff at First Southeast Bank are more than just bankers. We are your friends and neighbors, working and living in the same communities you do! We make it our priority to be active in serving our communities as well as providing you the best financial services available!

Holiday Hours & Special Events

Holiday Hours 2018

*this includes drive-up services*

CLOSE EARLY

Friday, March 30th, Close at Noon for Good Friday Friday, November 23th, Close at 2:00 for ThanksgivingMonday, December 24th, Close at Noon for Christmas Eve Monday, December 31st, Close at 3:00 for Year End

CLOSED

Monday, May 28th, Closed for Memorial Day Wednesday, July 4th, Close for Independence Day Monday, September 3th, Closed for Labor Day Monday, November 12th, Closed for Veterans Day Thursday, November 22rd, Closed for Thanksgiving Tuesday, December 25th, Closed for Christmas Tuesday, January 1st, 2019, Closed for New Year’s Day

Greg Turner's Retirement

First Southeast Bank honored retiring Executive Vice President Greg Turner with an open house at their Canton location on December 13th. Turner retired from the bank after 40+ years of service. The party was very well attended by over 100 community members, friends, family and colleagues. Turner will continue to serve on the bank’s Board of Directors. The officers, directors and staff of First Southeast Bank wish Greg the very best in his retirement and thank him for all his dedicated years of service.

RURAL CONCERNS

Please help make this Christmas special for everyone!

First Southeast Bank is a drop off location in connection with Rural Concerns "Christmas in Fillmore County."

We will accept any unwrapped gift items from toddlers to teens. A few suggested items would be clothing, games, mittens, hats, gloves or any item you think they would love. We also accept non-perishable food items for the SEMCAC Food Shelf. All donated items will be accepted through the week of our open house.

We would like to say Thank You to all of our past and present donators. With the outpouring of support from our communities many families have had special Christmases.

First Southeast Bank has been a drop-off location for 20+ years and we plan to continue for many more.

We Solute Our Staff's Dedication to the Community

First Southeast Bank Welcomes Wanda Scheevel

First Southeast Bank is excited to welcome Wanda Scheevel as a Customer Service Representative to its team.

Wanda joined the staff at First Southeast Bank the end of August. She was born in Spring Grove. Her family moved to North Dakota for a short time only to move back to the family farm located 1 mile NW of Harmony. Wanda learned the meaning of hard, diligent work through raising cattle, horses, pigs and the chores she was responsible for growing up on the family farm. Wanda and her husband Kyle currently live in Harmony. Their son Tryston is currently serving in the United States Army. “We encourage our employees to bring a customer friendly experience for everyone who visits our locations”, stated Christopher Skaalen, President of First Southeast Bank. “Wanda not only has the expertise to assist our customers with all of their financial needs but also brings a personal, hands on approach to customer service. We are very excited to have Wanda working with our team.”

Wanda and Kyle enjoy anything to do with the outdoors, riding motorcycle, enjoying their home and being with family and friends. She personally enjoys gardening, hiking, Halloween and Elvis Presley. Wanda states “She is very grateful to First Southeast Bank for giving her this opportunity to be a part of this team. I absolutely love being able to help our community with their banking needs, along with my amazing co-workers. First Southeast Bank is a very friendly family orientated business to work for.”

First Southeast Bank Welcomes Heather Broadwater

First Southeast Bank of Canton and Harmony welcomes Heather Broadwater to the staff as a customer service representative in the Harmony location. Heather comes to the bank with over 13 years of banking experience and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in many areas in banking industry.

Growing up locally in Southeast Minnesota, Heather knows, loves and respects what the area has to offer. During her time away from work, she enjoys helping her husband, Ben, with custom forage harvesting during the summer and fall months. She enjoys time outdoors, watching sports, especially the Minnesota Vikings, spending time with family, friends, and raising their young daughter Marley.

“I am very excited and look forward to getting to know my fellow coworkers and everyone in the community,” stated Heather.

“We are pleased that Heather has joined our team,” stated bank President Christopher Skaalen. “Our customers will immediately notice Heather’s strong commitment to community banking, their individual needs and the needs of our community.”

4-H Market Livestock Auction

4-H is a very well known organization here in the southeastern part of Minnesota. Kids take on the responsibility of different projects and working with their livestock all year long. This organization builds hardworking, dedicated and well rounded individuals and First Southeast Bank is a strong advocate of the 4-H program. We show our support by being involved in the 4-H market livestock premium auction. First Southeast Bank will purchase a premium for the animal the kids have brought to the County Fair. This way, part of the money goes to the 4-H program and part of it goes to the kids for their hard work. This is a way First Southeast Bank can recognize the kids and the organization they represent.

AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY INVOLVEMENT

Relay for Life

At First Southeast Bank, many of our employees are involved in the American Cancer Society Fillmore County “Relay For Life” program. We work hard throughout the year to raise money for cancer research and cancer patients. Whether we are giving our time holding a chair position on the Relay For Life Committee, selling candy bars, putting gift baskets together for a live auction, participating and supporting the bean bag toss tournaments or “walking” the Relay For Life, we have fun and are gratified knowing we are helping people in our community.

First Southeast Bank is a strong supporter of the Fillmore County Relay For Life Program.

Robert Jackson Memorial

This year the tournament was held Monday June 12, 2017. The tournament will be held on Monday June 11, 2018. If you have a team already or would like to golf, contact Chris Skaalen for more information. 507.886.6922

Robert Jackson Memorial Foundation was established in 2001 in memory of our good friend and colleague Robert “Bob” Jackson. Robert was an officer and director of both the Canton State Bank and First Southeast Bank, as well as serving as a director through the years of the Harmony Golf Club. For nearly fifteen years, the Foundation has sponsored an annual golf event in June to promote and raise money for the Foundation. To date over $200,000 has been raised for scholarships and community projects for the area. If you would like more information about the Foundation or the annual golf event, please feel free to contact us.

June is Dairy Month

June is dairy month and it brings lots of excitement to First Southeast Bank as ice cream is a treat to many. We at First Southeast Bank know dairy farmers work hard to bring us the highest quality dairy products. We show our support to the Dairy Farmers by having a day serving ice cream! At different times in June, the Fillmore County Dairy Truck parks at both the Canton and Harmony locations and serves milk shakes. All in all, it’s a fun day that is enjoyed by lots of people.

New Lending Staff Addition

First Southeast Bank, located in Harmony and Canton, Minnesota is pleased to announce the addition of Jessica Aggen to their lending staff. Jessica will be joining the staff as Vice President, concentrating on agricultural lending. Jessica comes to First Southeast Bank with over 17 years of banking experience ranging from operations, compliance, and most recently, lending. “Satisfaction to me is interacting with the community and providing valuable financial assistant to our customers,” commented Aggen.

Raised on a family farm by Benson, MN, Jessica was active in 4-H, FFA, Band and Choir. Her love of agriculture is evident in her extra-curricular activities including being an adult advisor to the Minnesota Junior Simmental Association, Committee Chair for the upcoming Simmental Junior Nationals, 4-H Swine Project Development Committee, 4-H Beef Project Development Committee, Fillmore County 4-H Market Livestock Committee, Minnesota Junior Livestock Show volunteer, and as a member of the Minnesota Simmental Association.

Jessica and her husband Matt, along with Dr. Lynn and Barb Aggen, own and operate Oak Meadow Farms. Jessica enjoys watching their boys show their beef and swine at county, state and national levels and attending high school sporting events, camping and spending time with family and friends. “We are extremely fortunate to have someone with Jessica’s credentials joining our team as we look forward to continuing our commitment to agriculture in southeast Minnesota,” stated First Southeast Bank President Christopher Skaalen.

Staff Update

Chris Eide joins the bank as Executive Vice President and is located in the Harmony office.

Eide brings 15 years of agriculture and banking experience to FSEB. He previously worked for a neighboring COOP and other financial institutions. Eide attended college in River Falls WI, where he earned a BS degree in Agronomy.

Growing up on a farm in Rushford and working with farmers for a number of years, Chris brings a strong understanding of agriculture. He enjoys working with people to achieve their financial goals and Chris believes in the importance of building long standing relationships with his customers.

Chris enjoys hunting, fishing and camping. Spending time with his family and watching his daughter dance. He also has a love for cooking and will BBQ for family events.

Eide volunteers for local town celebrations such as Dairy Night on the Farm for both Winona and Fillmore County and also helps with the tractor pull at Rushford Days.

“We are very happy that Chris has agreed to become a part of our team,” stated Christopher Skaalen, President of First Southeast Bank. “Chris has a dedication to local community banking and providing financial expertise that will allow our customers to grow.”

4th of July in Harmony

Harmony loves to celebrate the 4th of July and First Southeast Bank employees have a fun time participating in the town’s celebration. Sometimes we have a float in the parade. Sometimes we volunteer at various activities around town.

We collaborate with the Harmony Fire Fighters' and co-sponsor the fireworks display every year. Harmony has one of the finest fireworks dispalys around.

We unite with Harmony Enterprises (HECO) and co-sponsor the Jim Busta Band each year. The band was in the parade along with playing enjoyable music in the park after the parade. Guests were able to bring a chair, sit down, relax and have a great time.

Overall, the 4th of July celebration is a very fun experience.

PAST HISTORY:2015 we co-sponsored the Spudmobile. Guests were able to walk through the fabulous bus filled with potato history

FIRST SOUTHEAST BANK WINS AWARD

First Southeast Bank recently won the Strong Communities Award from Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of Des Moines, beating out three competitors in the rural category to win the $15,000 award. Click to read the whole story.

CARE GIVER PROGRAM

There is now a program which has been established for the caregiver of terminally ill patients. This program has been designed to give the caregiver a rest from clinical visits, relieve stress or give a break from making meals in ways such as a massage, manicure, pedicure or a prepared dinner. We are proud to say this program was created by Sandy Benson, one of our employees at First Southeast Bank.

Meals on Wheels

There are quite a few First Southeast Bank employees who volunteer their lunch hour delivering “Meals On Wheels” to the elderly and physically impaired within our communities. Thanks to the volunteer work they do, this program is able to endure.

Steam Engine Days

The towns of Hesper and Mabel celebrate Steam Engine Days every year the second weekend in September. This is a fun weekend for the young and old to get out and see some of the first steam engine tractors ever made to tractors of today. First Southeast Bank also participates in the Steam Engine Days Parade by walking along and handing out goodies or treats. We like to join in this event because it gives us time to get out and see our customers!

Santa Day

Canton and Harmony host an annual “Santa Day” each December. First Southeast Bank employees donate their time by taking pictures of children with Santa and Mrs. Claus, working in “Toyland” (gifts for parents) and making sure all the kids go home having had a fun experience. We also donate the photo supplies and books that are given out by Santa himself!